by Rev. John G. Hibbard

To say that the Christian looks upon life as a journey is to affirm three points: (1) life has a purpose and a goal; (2) life on earth is a gift from God; (3) life on earth and our destination of heaven are intertwined and related to each other. While we journey to ultimate union with God in the Kingdom of Heaven, we also live in union with God now. Jesus in his ministry on earth announced that the Kingdom of God is among us. I say this because there is a tendency either to concentrate on the goal or final point of the journey that we forget to enjoy each day of on our pilgrimage, or else, we get so caught up in the journey that we forget our destination. Life is a balance of living in the here and now as well as moving to life with God. Each day we live in God's grace as we journey to God.

At birth each person begins this pilgrimage to God. It is a journey that encompasses the whole person. It is a physical journey as well as a spiritual journey. We embark on a mission, and our life with its successes and failures, challenges and accomplishments teaches us many lessons so that we may grow from our experiences here on earth in order to prepare for our life in heaven. The lessons of life come in many differing circumstances of our life, and our options in those circumstances number more than the stars in a night sky. Our choices--some good, some bad--are important to the fulfillment our goals. Our life journey is our spiritual school, and all of it is for one purpose, to learn from the experiences and pains, the challenges and struggles of this lifetime so that we may benefit from it in the joy of Heaven.

To help us on this journey God has given talents and people to aid our spiritual growth. It is up to each one of us to benefit from these gifts. From these life experiences some people will build something constructive and lasting. Others unfortunately will collapse under the weight of the burden and walk away, bitter and miserable, having learned or accomplished nothing. It is our choice whether we accept the help of God and others. We do not journey alone nor unaided, for along the way we are uplifted by God's signs of hope and consolation and from the people God places in our lives. It is our faith that allows us to see these signs and persons, otherwise we are pulled down by the disappoints and trials of life. It is especially in our moments of weakness that we learn the lessons of our mutual dependency on others and our need for salvation. The challenge of life is to learn how we need God's gift of salvation and the help of others. God has given us the dignity to be a sign of his presence in the world. It is our choice whether we learn this on earth or not. It is our responsibility.

These lessons not only shape our existence here on earth, but they also benefit us when our journey on earth is done. Then we will realize that our suffering will be rewarded in the joy of Heaven. It is up to us whether we build from the events of life, including and especially from the challenges, the wreckage or loss, or whether we walk away broken and hopeless. While many events may seem like a pain at the time, later we will look back and see how they have formed us, and why they had to happen. These events form the foundation of our life so that later we may build upon them.

Even though we are people of faith, there are times in our life when we look up to the heavens and shake our fist at God and say, "Why?" This is the wrong question. The question we need to ask is "What will I learn? What is the growth that will come from suffering this event?" This is the first step in the long and winding road of our faith journey on earth. There is reason that the lessons of life are hard. This reason is hidden from us and forms part of our self-discovery, but it will = eventually be revealed. Knowing that there is a reason often will be the only consolation that we have. For the reason is never revealed in the midst of trial or suffering, but only as we look back afterward. This means that many of the things that we regard as random or coincidence are in fact the right things we need to further our growth. While we cannot control the circumstances our life, we can control the outcome after the lessons of life are learnt. We can control our reaction to them and how we let them make us stronger or tear us down. It is our choice.

While each one of us has a specific purpose and meaning in our own life, our purpose in life is tied to others, especially to the lives of people around us. It is true that each of us is unique and has different talents, but we share the same destination. We all have one thing in common as we journey to God: at different times, we will be either a teacher or a student. We will teach others by our own example, or we will learn by the example of others. We have a responsibility not only for our own growth but also for the growth of those around us. This is why Jesus has come among us, not just to save us as an individual, but to save us a community of believers. One of the lessons of life is to see our connectedness and the responsibility which we share for each other as members of the Body of Christ.

The Christian perspective of life not only shapes our attitude to life on earth, but it also shapes our view of those who have died. In the Christian view those who have died are no more gone than if they lived in another province or country. Although we cannot see them or be with them, we know that they are still alive and happy. We can talk to them in prayer, and they often answer us by assisting us, by speaking to us in the signs of life, and by helping us to see God's love. As Catholic Christians we pray for the dead because we believe that they are alive. We also pray for them because we believe that they continue their journey, that is they continue to learn the lessons of life which they did not learn when they were here on earth. This purification or growth is necessary in order to draw closer to God, the Infinite Light. In other words, learning the lessons of life or being purified is what life is all about. It begins now as we live here on earth and continues in the next life. Whatever we lack or do not accomplish in this life must be completed in the hereafter. This is what we Catholic Christians call purgatory, that is the state of preparation for the Kingdom of God. This purification actually begins on earth and is our on going transformation in the image of Christ. We pray at the Eucharist that just as the Holy Spirit will change our gifts of bread and wine into the body and blood of Christ, so we also will be changed into one body, one spirit in Christ (Eucharistic Prayer III).

We pray for the dead because love is a bond that can never be broken; even death cannot break it. Nothing separates us from Christ and our loved ones who have died, except time. One day we will all be united with them and with God. As Catholics we believe that life is a journey to God that continues even in the next world. We also believe that it is easier to learn the lessons of life here on earth rather than in the hereafter. Why? Because we need others to assist us and be models for us. So we pray for the dead that they will complete their journey and growth and purification. In return, when they complete their purification, they can pray for us and help us in our journey. Part of their mission in heaven is to help us on earth. In fact because they are spiritual they can be closer to us now than when they were on earth. Those who have died have not lost anything by leaving the earth, in fact they have gained everything. The only tragedy in their passing is that they have left before us. In other words it is not their loss but ours that we mourn. We are the ones left behind. The truth we must learn is our dependency upon one another and our destiny to live in heaven. Because we still love our relatives and friends who have left us, we must help them come into the Light of God. Because they love us, they help us as we continue to learn the lessons of life.

We live in an age of information and can get data on almost everything except the hereafter, but we cannot know about death, or what it feels like, or how we pass through the gates of death to spiritual life. Our physical body reaches a point when it can no longer sustain our life on earth. That body dies, but we do not. Death is like pregnancy, it is a passage that happens and is over. Death like pregnancy is a process that leads to a new form of life. The question is where do we find ourselves after the process. Many scoff at life after death because they cannot see it or understand it, but for the Christian death is a gateway to fuller life with God in Christ.

When we think of life we can see many stages that we have already experienced in our journey. Our physical life began at conception when we lived in our mother's womb for nine months. But the time came for us to leave the womb and enter into the world through birth. Even after birth we came to consciousness and spiritual awareness. Now there remains another phase of life that only begins after death. Each step of our life leads to a new and higher form of being. On earth our bodies are like the space suit that an astronaut needs in order to adapt to the atmosphere of space. There comes a time when we do not need the body in order to exist. Our spiritual soul and consciousness live in a new atmosphere of heaven.

In recent years we have heard of the phenomenon of life after death experiences. While we cannot take these as absolute truth, there is increasing evidence that these are more than dreams. In these experiences the majority of people who have died for a very few minutes have experienced a brilliant, warm and welcoming light. Some had the sensation of running through a beautiful meadow and were amazed at the brilliance of the colours. Some have even begun to see their life in review. More importantly these experiences have changed their lives for the better. Now they have a wider perspective of what life is all about. They see the real meaning of life-that our life on earth is an opportunity to do good to others and grow in our spiritual journey.

In the movie Flat Liners a number of = medical students induce heart failure in each other in order to experience life after death. Each student asks that they be left dead longer than the previous. Several of them begin to experience a life review or judgment and see the things that they need to correct or amend in their life. While it was not a particularly good movie, it portrays something of our Catholic belief in the particular judgment and in the need to make amends for our transgressions in life and progress in our spiritual journey. Medical science has not fully accepted these near death experiences. Some scientists dismiss them as delusions or chemical reaction of the brain or psychosis. However, more and more they are being taken seriously. One reason is that while dreams are powerful, they lose their detail quickly especially after they are recalled or told to others. Dreams are products of the subconscious. However, Near death experiences have different characteristics. The details do not get lost with the retelling, but remain vivid and intense. In additions, these experiences change people's life and their perspective on life. Whether you want to believe in them or not, they are incredible glimpses into the hereafter and support our belief in the life of heaven.

Upon our entrance into the hereafter and before we see God face to face, there comes that time when all the things that happened to us on earth become clear and understood. There are many names for this experience. Some call it "their life flashing before their eyes"; others call it "judgment." We Catholics call it "the particular judgment." Not judgment in the sense that God condemns us, but judgment in the sense that we experience an impartial review of our life. We see all the circumstances where we accomp-lished good or evil. We will = see the impact that our life and decisions had on others. It is here that we will understand the purpose of our life on earth and the reason for the struggles that we faced, and how these impacted on our spiritual growth. We will see how God invited us to learn from others and be an example to them. We will also know the work that is left to be completed--the spiritual growth that remains to be completed in our mission given by God.

While in the past we emphasized that we will see all the evil things that we did, we have forgotten that we will also see the many good things that we have done-the things that are worthy of praise, the things that God has not forgotten. We will also see the times that even when we acted according to our conscience, we still did not make the right decision or hurt others. Then we will understanding how those things were fundamentally wrong. We will see how our narrow religious or political beliefs and our prejudices taught from childhood slowed our spiritual growth and oppressed others. We will experience the pain that our selfishness, pride and sin caused others as well as ourselves, and we will experience the joy that our good deeds brought to others. Here it is not God who will judge us, rather we will judge ourselves. It is here that we will understand just how great and overwhelming God's love is--the love that we did not fully accept or live or share. It is here we will feel the pain that we caused others.

The lessons that we failed to learn on earth must be continued in the hereafter so that the soul can move closer to God. For those who did not learn that life is about doing good to others, then that lesson must be learnt before they approach God. For those who did not learn how to live for others, then that lesson must be leant before they see God face to face. For those who repented in the last moments of their life, but were fully aware of their actions in committing horrible crimes, they will begin to understand the damage their actions caused their victims and families, as well as to learn the loving plan of God. They will realize that theirs is still a long road to spiritual maturity. That is why as Catholics we refer to the differing "time" we spend in purgatory. In actuality there is no time, since the soul lives outside the realm of time and space.

In our life review we will judge ourselves and our actions and see what must still be accomplished in our spiritual education in the hereafter to compensate for the lessons we missed or did not learn on earth. Even though we will see our failure to act in kindness and love, the grace and love of God will overwhelm us so we will not be filled with despair, but rather with hope and love. In purgatory we begin to experience the warm and healing love of God's light, even though we do not yet see God face to face. Little by little the soul moves closer and closer to God, the Infinite Light and Source of all life. The ultimate surprise of heaven might be how God's love has always been with us along the entire journey of life. Why do we wait for the life of heaven to discover it?